Thanks Samantha Strong. The reason we got involved was ONLY her desire to establish the precedent for military intervention under UN votes whenever there is a civilian population in a war zone...like whenever Israel dares to fight back against extermination by the rockets launched by the Iranian Chapter of the Brotherhood of Muslim Murderers. Also the stalemate strategy in use keeps the need for intervention eternal.

Of course long, long ago in another galaxy far, far away, Luttrell's book/story would have been made into a major patriotic Hollywood production with A-list actors starring..

Today? The proverbial snow-balls chance in you know where...UNLESS, of course it could portray him as an alcoholic AND drug-addicted gunrunner/drug-trafficker who beat and cheated on his wife with his wife's little sister, kicked the dog and cursed at little children, robbed Girl Scouts of their cookies...and betrayed his country to boot..

OR, alternately, produce the movie as a tale of the Government's betrayal of a deluded, sad-sack low-IQ Lutrell and his Seal-Team to the Taliban by greedy Halliburton executives in cahoots with Cheney and Bush in exchange for US Afghan mineral rights and a cut of the poppy-trade on the side in a new US supported Taliban Afghan government come to power behind a US-backed coup by assassination of a overly independent-minded Karzi..

Being a war photog is a shortcut to fame and fortune, and is a glamour slot in media. It is also exceedingly dangerous and the list of dead or maimed war junkie media reporters/photogs is quite long.

***************V Xenophon - "Of course long, long ago in another galaxy far, far away, Luttrell's book/story would have been made into a major patriotic Hollywood production with A-list actors starring.."

That was a massive clusterfuck in which 19 Seals and Spec Ops Nightstalkers died because a SEAL team of 4 made the huge mistake on a deep penetration mission into enemy territory. They let 3 enemy Afghan civilians they walked into go free and did not abort the mission. And the enemy civvies promptly called in between 80 and 150 Afghan Taliban fighters to hunt down and kill the 4. After 3 SEALS were killed, one escaped...a rescue helicopter arrived too late.

The 16 - 8 SEALS and 8 Nightstalkers who were called into the ambush by the SEAL team leader Michael Murphy, who deceased, was a Medal of Honor awardee from Bush. The Taliban just waited and when the helo was in range, took out the helo and all on board with a single RPG.

You don't make movies of fiascos like that one.While the SEAL team leader got himself and 18 other people killed from misjudgments, he got the Medal of Honor because he courageously got his comrades killed.

You are right on with the analysis and we will hear more about R2P used by the UN in unanticipated ways.

But the name is Samantha Power. Married to wack job Cass Sunstein, Obama's dangerous loony friend from Chicago and of course they are connected to Soros and Clinton Center for American Progress.

None of them should be able to visit the White House much less be part of the inner circle of our govt. Will take years to root them out including the 25+ marxist Czars and friends. Why is the GOP not digging into the activities of the marxist Czars and use them as an election issue??

"While the SEAL team leader got himself and 18 other people killed from misjudgments, he got the Medal of Honor because he courageously got his comrades killed."

In hindsight, a mistake was made. The mistake was being a compassionate human and not murdering - in cold blood - three innocent Afghans including a young boy who just happened to be in their own back yard when the Seals got there.

There was no good choice to be made, so he risked his men to save some Afghans, and there was the distinct possibility it would work. Later in the story some Afghans with similar courage save his life repeatedly and risk their entire families and villages to do it. He DID make the courageous decision and it cost his men their lives. Courage can have that outcome. It's not like in the movies ya know.

@bagoh20: Thanks for your clarifying post.....I'm sure Hetherington was a brave man, and he died an honorable death. I don't mean this as a slam on him, but every week some American soldier dies for less pay and no glory. Their deaths are given no attention in the media save to highlight the futility and confusion of our efforts. With the exception of The Hurt Locker, I can't think of a single motion picture that pays respect to the efforts of our servicemen. Pvt. Bradley Manning has received more sympathy in certain quarters than a burn ward at Walter Reed.

Restrepo was an excellent, very realistic and very affecting film. RIP, Tim.

In an interview from last year that I saw tonight on PBS Hetherington said the guys in the unit he covered initially assumed a cynical detachment vis a vis him and his crew. But you can see in the film that they grow close to the film makers over time , protectively pushing them safely behind themselves when incoming fire begins.

He told the story strait, a rarity in documentary world, and seems to have been a good man.